Lockheed U-2 Dragon Lady reconnaissance ops, RAF Fairford, England [4K] 

Oh how I wish my Dad was still alive to sit in this aircraft ... 32 years Naval officer (Aviation Combat Specialist)... He'd be on the edge of his seat for sure. RIP Dad I'm sure you do see it 🙏🇺🇸💪🇺🇸🙏

I don't know too much about these planes, but I do know I sleep better at night knowing these folks are on it.

Can’t believe that the engineering after ww2 is so good it still exists in this modern world, the engineers and design teams were truly ahead of time in those days. Well done guys.

the shot of it landing was remarkably beautiful. the moon, the black jet backlit in the orange sky, beautiful.

Worked on them from 93 to 2001 at Osan, Beale and Alconbury. Glad to see them still going strong.

67 years old and still flying. RIP Kelly Johnson.

Introduced in 1957, this workhorse sneaky bird has a long history - almost as long as the B-52! Thanks for showing this excellent video. More eyes in the sky. Great stuff!

A prayer from me to keep all the men and woman doing this marvelous work safe.

My father was stationed at RAF Upper Heyford from 1960-1962. Our house on base was on the outskirts of this huge open field which the U2s used as an approach for landing on the runway the distant side beyond a road. I can still vaguely remember waving at the pilots as the planes lazily flew low over the field .. close enough you could see the colors on the helmets and even had a pilot wave back once. That was 1961 .. over 60 years ago.

I work near Fairford. No one complains about the noise! They are quite loud but that is amazing to witness.

I Watch U2's Taking Off Daily In Northern California. The US Is Guarding The West Coast And Alaska Constantly! What A Beautiful Sight When Taking Off! I Love The USA! ✌️🇺🇲✌️😎

Such an amazingly beautiful aircraft, I have no words... (just sitting with an open mouth and making gurgling sounds of joy)

Thank you, USAF 🇬🇧 🇺🇸

I'm proud to be British good job lads keeping our sky's and others safe xx

Я в захваті: чудова робота машин підтримки на землі. I am delighted: the excellent work of support machines on the ground.

A mystical Aura surrounds these U2s a truly unique plane with a long history.Thx for the great footage👏👏👏

Oh! MAGIC. I could never get enough of watching U2 s take off,and,land,when I served at RAAF Laverton. They were the most beautiful thing I had seen,at that time. USAF WRS Squadron..{Weather Reconnaissance Squadron} Still make my hair bristle.

The fact that this ting is still lurking in the skies give me a great feeling!

NICE Take off! Best Bird! I loved my very best ten years with U S Navy Coronado And Camp Pendleton. My dad had 2 qualifications with US Army WW2 sharp shooter and engineer. We have military 100 years our families before. USAF Rotc

I'm astounded this plane still flies.

Another Skunk Works / Kelly Johnson beauty. Functionally exquisite and technically beautiful

Love seeing the "dragonlady" with all her new, "special" improvements!

That rate of climb is stunning!

Strangely Beautiful Aircraft😍

Happy to see the support across nations

Lovely video. Those pilots are so brave & they do their job to keep us safe.

Given how difficult these things are to fly, these daily long endurance missions are even more incredible. The toll this takes on the 2 crew members is immense. Keep those lungs in good condition guys!

The U-2 frame might sounds "old" but I am pretty sure the electro-optics, avionics, and radar have the latest upgrades. What gets me every time is when they land, the guy you believe was a "cook" or "janitor" from the base is the one that pickup the "boxes". I guess they are the "experienced ones" since wearing suits on the airbase will show everybody who they really are.

I used to watch the U2's taking off at what used to be RAF Sculthorpe. It's closed down now, apart from the runway which is used for training. But for a period of time some U2's were based there while the runway at their base was resurfaced. The sight of these U2's though, taking off and more or less going vertical was an amazing sight. The amount of lift on those wings created was amazing. I doubt if we will ever see the likes again. If only we could turn back the clock.

Holy shit. I had no idea that these were even still in active service

The U2 is a masterpiece

Most pilots would think that landing was WAY long...but RAF Fairford has a nearly 10,000 ft long runway so the Dragon Lady did indeed land on the proverbial first 1/3rd of usable. Due to the length of Fairford's runway it was an alternate when the Space Shuttle used to fly.

52 years ago I watched a U-2 takeoff and do the same high-angle climb at U-Tapao AFB, Thailand. It had been introduced 14 years before that!

The U.S military operation is unmatched in this world when i see the preparation with these machines, that, the B-52, B2 and the Drones. I saw a fly by, under the belly, of a b52, b2 with some F22 escort, it was a thing of beauty and looked mighty scary.

Thanks u.s.for helping Ukraine and allied countries god bless.

Technology at its best. So beautiful

Kelly Johnson & Co. genius brains…

Beautifully done video with a number of brilliant clips. (That moon low in the sky over the tower for one.) U2's are graceful, well... except that landing bit... and photogenic, you've done them justice with some very good shots (i.e. perfectly positioned to catch and frame the approach, landing, and the chase car.) It doesn't hurt that the sky and moon cooperated for much of it. Well done.

Awesome video 👍 that aircraft seems to have had some upgrades and it looks new , thank you for your posting 👍

It’s a very special plane to fly. 🇺🇸 ❤️ RAAF Laverton

Cool, Last time I saw one of these U2's was during my years at Edwards Air Base. They are very impressive on take offs.

Great video...... I noticed over the last few days that there have been Sentry' flying out of Turkey into Romania and along the borders of Moldova and Ukraine. Even the Swedish airforce has been involved with a flight today along the Polish and Ukrainian border. Putin really had no idea that the west was going to mobilise so much hardware in support of Ukraine and it shows in the devastation that his forces continue to suffer at the hands of a well motivated nation 👏 🇺🇦 🇺🇦 🇺🇦

Your shot of the rising moon was * chef's kiss *. Glad you stayed late and kept filming👍

First introduced in the 1950's, yet still flying usefully today. Incredible engineering.

My mama use to say, "if you ain't doing anything wrong then you have nothing to worry about."

I did not know the U2 was still in service. It looks like they have been upgraded quite a bit. The U-2 is 67 years old. I had never seen one with that module on top. It seems this is the U-2S (which they have 24 of) with the Senior Span/Spur communications suite. They were supposed to be decommissioned in 2020 and the role taken over by the Global Hawk reconnaissance drone, but instead they decided to extend its service and upgrade them instead. The upgrades starting in 2019 and should be finished. It looks crazy impressive. It already has a range of 7-8,000 miles and a max altitude of 70-80,000 feet and goes Mach .7 and the pilot has to endure missions of 12-14 hours. It seems they can even refuel them in air and launch them from a carrier. This thing is 15 years older than I am and I have a grandchild. In case you are curious... this is the info on the new upgrades... "The latest version of SYERS-2, the SYERS-2C, is a 10-band multi-spectral camera that has traditional electro-optical and infrared capabilities, but can also build images based on the electromagnetic signatures that different objects produce. The most up-to-date ASARS-2, the ASARS-2A, is a mechanically-scanned array radar that produces imagery based on the reflection of those waves. The full Senior Glass system is actually capable of collecting intelligence on a variety of very different signals. The Senior Spear equipment, which fits inside one of the aircraft’s two Super Pods can spot and monitor enemy communications. The Senior Ruby gear, which goes in the other pod, can locate and categorize hostile radar emissions. An antenna farm along the belly adds additional capabilities, which could include spying on different data streams and the ability to more accurately geo-locating the source of a transmission. Lockheed Martin’s Tri-INT arrangement would consolidate the signals intelligence systems into just one Super Pod, and potentially elsewhere along the fuselage, and fit a multi-spectral camera under the other wing. This could be the SYERS-2C, but the firm told FlightGlobal it would prefer to use United Technologies Aerospace Systems’ (UTAS) 10-band MS-177A, which sits inside a rotating turret and is therefore more flexible. Raytheon’s ASARS-2B would go in the nose. Though this radar shares a basic nomenclature with the older unit, it is essentially an all-new, active-electronically scanned array (AESA) design that scans faster and is more powerful and precise, producing better imagery, quicker. It also has a ground moving target indicator capability to track moving vehicles or potentially help the pilot refine their search area based on those tracks. The Air Force already plans to spend more than $215 million on development of ASARS-2B between 2019 and 2023. It is also in the process of adding the older seven-band MS-177 camera on the RQ-4 and wants to begin installing the improved A model, along with other upgrades to those unmanned aircraft, in the near future as well. Lockheed Martin could propose the Air Force expand its purchases of MS-177As to include additional units to go into upgraded U-2s. Lockheed Martin will still have to either develop or otherwise locate a compact signals intelligence suite that offers equal or better capabilities to Senior Glass to complete its proposed Tri-INT U-2S package. Lastly, the updated planes would feature additional and modernized data links, including multi-function advanced data links (MADL) or similar functionality to allow the Dragon Ladies to communicate with stealthy F-35 Joint Strike Fighters, which can themselves vacuum up an impressive amount of intelligence data, and B-2 Spirit bombers in near real time. Coupled with a device Lockheed Martin calls the “Einstein Box,” which acts as a gateway for various data streams, the high-flying spy planes could be able to fuse different information together and otherwise help provide other aircraft, personnel on the ground or at sea, or analysts back at base a more complex “picture” of the battlefield."

My brother-in-law was based at Fairford during the Cuba crisis.

The noise the Dragon Lady makes is Absolutely awesome, sound to my ears, the roar on take off is just Pure Awesomeness. IN GOD WE TRUST ALL OTHERS WE MONITOR 🐲 🐉

I hear these are one of the hardest planes to fly after a Harrier jump jet.

Gorgeous sound. The U2 is older than me & I am not a youngster.

Absolutely beautiful Dragon Ladies! They are in other undisclosed bases in Europe and the Mid-East. I have seen them up close at Beale at various airshows there since I live in a small town nearby. Putin does not stand a chance between these planes and satellites.

Gary Powers would like this.

It's hard to believe that the U2 is still flying obviously it has been upgraded over the decades but the original design is still visible,

Also unmanned Global Hawks based in Sicily equally valuable flying daily around the region and Black sea as Forte10 and Forte11. Lockheed EP-3 flying over Romania aswell. It appears UK and US are taking it in turns to fly refuelling missions over Romania daytime hours at 25000ft. Also RC135 Rivets from RAF and USAF have been doing recon in the area too. On U2s many years ago I saw a U2 on low flight path flying into Mildenhall/ Lakenheath. It was at night and very dark and low, I could not make out the plane but it wasn't noisy. The only reason I knew it was a U2 was one wing was over here >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> it might be black and at night but it was obvious.

Cool that these U-2's are still flying reconnaissance and nice that the USAF brought a Charger over to Europe as a chase car for the U-2 :)

Had the privilege of seeing one up close take off from Moffet Field Naval Base, CA in the 1980's.

Worked with SAC with the U2R at DMAFB being deployed to SEA numerous times OL20 operations the U2 is one of the most amazing Acft ever produced Kelly Johnson on Skunk Works

Every breath you take Every move you make Every bond you break Every step you take I'll be watching you. - The Police : I'll be watching you.

2:00 jeez, that thing soared up fast

Jet sailplanes are friggin cool. It's kinda crazy how the pogo gear just sort of skids and scrapes along after the wings get airborne.

Such advanced technology this plane is cutting edge definitely not 70 years old

That second takeoff sounded frickin awesome. Wish they had a u2 for fs2020

Awesome Aircraft, the lift it achieves is incredible. Is this a Skunk works machine like the Blackbird? Great upload 👍

That is without a doubt, the loudest plane we have. Thank God it's cruising at 75000 feet and no one can hear it 🤣

By NATO watching u mean the Yanks and the Brits.

Every bit of new Tech that USAF can put into one package.🇨🇦

Take-off in 11 seconds from a standing start

Quite interesting take off. THX

Damn those things pick up speed fast on the runway and the wings lift up half way down runway Awesome footage,thanks for posting GOD bless our warriors of the skys,Best wishes to you all, from, Auckland, New Zealand. Love and Respect.

What a beautiful beast of an aircraft!

G-D. BLESS. MY. BELOVED. AMERICA 🇺🇸

Wow, I met a guy at Airspace America airshow, he gave me a book about the "Black Rainbow". Never thought I'd see a real one in commission. Back in May 1988.

you go guys USA 🇺🇸 👏

I know that they're safety cars following on the landing, but it looks like the most outmatched police chase ever!! "Excuse me sir, can I see your license, you were doing 500mph in a 60 zone"👍🤣🤣

The problem with this country and the world as a whole is that doctors and lawyers are seen as the pinnacle…this plane is older than most people watching this video…engineers should be held up in a higher regard than the book readers. Yes im an Engineer, i preferred the day rate over a lawyer or doctor

The great, black, 'wandering albatross' of the military aviation world departs: to soar on high; watching, listening, recording all beneath it's long darkened wings.

What a beautiful aircraft!!!!!. I thought these were all retired.

Canberra start up 5 am Raf.Wyton back in late 70:s. Beautiful on frosty morning 👍👀😁 ATVB2U up there on the edge of Space🇺🇦

I remember the U2 flying at RAAF Laverton Australia in the early 60s when I was in the RAAF. Off at about 9.30 in the morning and back about 3.30 in the afternoon. Never knew where they flew to as that was always top secret. Was so amazed how they climbed so fast and then disappeared. Not long after that the RB-57s turned up and the U2s disappeared.

I can clearly remember going for a ride in the chase car not the long ago to help guide the Ol Dragon Lady in for her landing.

Yes indeed. Putin can't take a shit without NATO knowing, sleep well, Vlad.

Amazing! U 2 is still the best detector in high attitude.

Great video and still a great looking aircraft in an unconventional way. The eye in the sky see’s all.

Those U2's gave Castro a lot of sleepless nights. I remember the sob going on for 4 hours at a time about 'the imperialist Yankee" telling the people of the imminent American invasion. This was back in the early 60's.

Incredible video, 👍

Thank's for this great video!

Excellent

I found this video inspiring for my latest. Love the title aha! What great fun.

Great content !

My brother was a nav on AWACS, and one of our family friends was a U2 pilot. Apparently you can clearly see the curvature of the earth at altitude. My bro worked on a U2 crew, and the pilot said that he fell asleep for 8 hours on a mission. Apparently they are VERY LOUD! A masterpiece of engineering.

Since they lose the wing gear at takeoff, what replaces that on landing?

Love it, i watched TR1 at raf alconbury 1980s

What about the UK's reconnaissance? I think we have an old bi-plane somewhere and a torch for night operations.

Watching JAKE11 in the sky’s that thing is 59 years old and still going strong.

Black Beauty 👌

Growing up in the 1960's in Albuquerque NM we as kids used to watch U-2's flying over head day and night. They made a very distinct low speed sound. I think they were stationed at Kirkland AFB. My Dad at the time had just gotten out of the Air Force and had a job as a Mechanical Engineer at Sandia Base with the old Atomic Energy Commission. We lived there from 1959- 1969.

These are long sorties. Figure 8 hours flight time and the pilot is in the suit for about 10 hours. Movement in the pressure suit is restricted. I wouldn't want to sit in a chair for 10 hours.

I always like the high angle takeoff-up into the black sky. Where Dragon Lady belongs. Like the SR-71. "Bye,bye earthlings."

Wow, looks like they have extra pods for fuel on the wings, does the center hump hold fuel too? I’m guessing they fly over Poland, Hungry and Slovakia and are looking into Ukraine. I bet they can stay up there for a long time.

that charger police car in the end was hauling asz 🤣